Rugby: head on tackle

Simon My son's PE teacher has told him that Bridging is lieegal for the U13 to U19 group. His Club coach has been encouraging its use in games for two seasons. I can see some of the dangers but also the advantages Who is right is it banned or can it be used? Paul submitted by email

How to teach the front on tackle to 10 year olds

Is sealing the ball at the tackle and ruck legal again?

Our U12 fly half is a talented yet small player but only seems to tackle when a player has already gone by and he uses his pace to takle from behind/side. Is there a drill to improve his confidence tackling face on.

i coach collegiate womens rugby...any suggestions for tackling sessions in practice - my girls are very hesitant to "hurt" each other. we have tackle dummies, but that just isn't the same...

can you touch the player on the ground? can you place your hands over the player onto the ground? any information on this would be really helpful.

Does anyone have a definitive answer to this question%3A can I coach basic tackling skills to U8s now, in preparation for next season, without falling foul of any RFU rules or regulations? Hugo

This is my first year playing on a rugby team for my school, grade 9, im much smaller than everyone else but i run fast and can be strong. my position is the blind side wing, and i dont understand what im supposed to do. it seems like i just jog and stay far away, but i dont know what im supposed to do if someone from the opposite team comes near me and noone else is one them, am i supposed to tackle? i also have trouble tackling cause my arms dont rap fast enough when they run into me, any advice?

My under 13 school rugby team played against a school team that were much bigger than my boys. This was their first experience playing against players that were much bigger than them. What do we do for future matches?

I am having trouble getting my girls to work as a team. Any advice?

I have just started helping our head coach with under12's team. He wants to retire and has put me forward to be head coach next season. I am a little worried on how i should aproach training with the boys, going to a full 15 a side team on a full pitch. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

My U11's are a mixed bunch when it comes to tackling. Some very good, most OK, some ...hmmmm... enough said. Been through all the drills and when we break things down, go back to basics, everything appears OK, but it doesn't always transfer into the game. Any ideas on small group games that will allow me to combine technique with confidence?

Some of my U9s players, who are experiencing contact for their first season, are showing reticence in tackling - how do you coach or get through the fear factor/element?

tackling under 9s fear

I coach under 9`s rugby and a lot of the kids have a bad fear of tackling, they lack the confidence to get stuck in. What is the best thing to help them overcome this?

Tackling Technique ? HELP?

I'm coaching and reffing U11 rugby and one of my players is the definitive 'big lad'. His 'strength' is his size and his power, but last weekend he didn't seem to get reffed fairly. The opposition couldn't tackle him down, one on one and when another two joined in to make a mini maul, that didn't slow him down much either. The ref then let other people join in the (one sided) struggle to tackle him down, which seemed very unfair as A) it's outside the laws of U11 rugby,, B) it makes it nigh on impossible for him to offload, C) when he is brought to ground, he has 4-5 players all over him and he got pinged for 'holding on'. He is a recent arrival to rugby and it was our first game for a couple of months, so the situation hadn't reared his head before. We are keen that he learns all of the core skills of rugby and doesn't get used as a battering ram, but after seeing a pack of hyenas trying to pull down the big fella, something just didn't seem right to me.I'd be grateful for any thoughts and opinions.

How can I improve my tackling? I'm new to the game this year, and I had a couple of injuries to my shoulder and ribs early on which held me back somewhat. I was diving in and making good hits before- now as I approach being fully fit again I have found if I hit a player running at me with my shoulder around hip-height, I make good contact, but fail to get the wrap with the arms, and often don't bring the man down. On bigger lads I've tried hitting as low as possible, but often end up with one leg, sometimes two, and very low, still not getting the desired effect.... So, depending on the size of the opponent, where should I be hitting with the shoulder? Hips, knees, or other? And any tips on getting the wrap right? Thanks